As a postdoc, you will develop new concepts for super-resolution computational imaging, to advance the capabilities of semiconductor metrology and enable accurate non-invasive characterization of nanostructures.

Optical metrology is a key ingredient of nanolithography, as it enables to characterize critical features of nanostructures printed on wafers in an accurate, high-speed and non-contact way. High-resolution imaging is an essential part of optical metrology: We need to perform single-shot imaging with the highest spatial resolution. However, the resolution of state-of-the-art non-fluorescent imaging techniques is limited by the diffraction of light.

Computational imaging is a promising new approach for microscopy, as it has the potential to increase the performance of any imaging system beyond the limitations introduced by optical components. Computational compressive sensing is a novel imaging paradigm that exploits the fact that natural images are sparse in some basis. Compressive imaging can help to robustly recover sub-wavelength information from the far-field image.

As a postdoc, you will develop new approaches of sparsity-based subwavelength imaging for optical metrology applications in the semiconductor industry. You will explore theoretical concepts underlying different algorithmic methods for super-resolution computational imaging. Algorithms will be validated on experimental data from available imaging systems, including a digital holographic microscope and coherent diffractive imaging set-ups. You will contribute to the improvement of cutting-edge metrology for nanolithography processes. Specific emphasis will be on the characterization of metrology structures that are relevant in the semiconductor industry.

You will collaborate with other scientists at ARCNL on the experimental implementation of newly developed imaging concepts, as well as with researchers from the semiconductor equipment manufacturer ASML.

You have a PhD in physics, computational physics or applied mathematics, and combine a strong theoretical foundation with an affinity for experiments and applications. 
You have experience in computational imaging, machine learning, modelling (optical) wave phenomena, information theory and/or optimization algorithms. Knowledge of imaging technology, advanced programming methods and/or semiconductor metrology is considered an advantage. 

Good verbal and written communication skills (in English) are required.

The position is intended as full-time (40 hours a week) appointment in the service of the Netherlands Foundation of Scientific Research Institutes (NWO-I) for the a duration of two years, with the possibility of extension.
The salary, depending on relevant experience before the beginning of the employment contract, will be €3.521 to €4.052 (scale 10) gross per month, based on fulltime, exclusive 8 % holiday allowance and 8.33% end-of-year bonus, in accordance with NWO-I regulations for academic personnel. A favorable tax agreement, the ‘30% ruling’, may apply to non-Dutch applicants. ARCNL assists any new foreign researchers with housing and visa applications and compensates their transport costs and furnishing expenses.

Nanoscale Imaging and Metrology

The Advanced Research Center for Nanolithography (ARCNL) focuses on the fundamental physics involved in current and future key technologies in nanolithography, primarily for the semiconductor industry. ARCNL is a public-private partnership between the Netherlands Foundation of Scientific Research Institutes (NWO-I), the University of Amsterdam (UvA), the VU University Amsterdam (VU) and the semiconductor equipment manufacturer ASML. ARCNL is located at the Amsterdam Science Park, The Netherlands, and is currently building up towards a size of approximately 100 scientists and support staff. See also www.arcnl.nl 

You will be embedded in the Nanoscale Imaging and Metrology group at ARCNL and work in a close collaboration with Computational Imaging and EUV Generation and Imaging groups. The research activities of the groups mainly take place in the general area of “metrology” and cover both fundamental research and real-life applications of that research.